My Scottish Grandpa

My grandfather raised me and my sister like daughters in his own home. With the help of my mother and grandma, he created a home for me that was so filled with love that I never felt my parents’ divorce. He proved to me that there are good men in the world, and showed me how those good men act. He taught me how to enjoy life, how to appreciate literature/knowledge, and how to face obstacles. He was something special, a miracle; you don’t meet people like him every day. I am lucky to be his granddaughter. I love you, grandpa, so much.

I get this warm feeling when I remmember those eight years living with my grandparents. 1st grade to 8th grade, they really did raise me. I think about the shortbread cookies that my grandma liked to buy. I think of the westy named Duncan that my grandpa loved so much. Westies are the dog of choice in my family, always named something scottish. I think about the notre dame cd that my grandpa played during christmas that had "christmas in killarney" on it. He lived in Chicago, he used to hang out with the irish/scottish crew. He had those suspenders and the hat. He always said we were irish too, and I believe it to an extent, but it could have been wishful thinking. Obviously there are many memories, but the scottish ones are important to me, and I feel like they should be recorded here specifically.

My grandpa loved Whisky now that I think about it. I never thought of that until now, whisky (yes im spelling it right) is a scottish drink. He specifically liked Jameson Irish whiskey (funny my brother's name is Jameson). He let me try it once and I made this really weird face because I thought it tasted just awful.

He used to be able to do those weird gibberish songs too, the ones that make a rhythm. He had eight kids, he used to tell them to make a certain sound, and when they came together it sounded cool. Stuff like "doggawaggawagga" or "skitterrattletat." My mom told me about it. He also had a scottish sense of humor. He liked to joke around with my sister and I. He told us farfetched stuff and would chuckle when we believed him. He lost a few fingers as a kid, and he used to be able to shake one of his hands really fast. I could never figure out how he did that.

The fridge of our home had the gordon crest on it. He took my mother to the NHSCOT highland games when she was younger....there is just so much. He bought my sister and I Gordon tartan shorts when we were younger, and my mom said he used to dress them up in kilts because he thought it was cute (she hated it).

He was a good man.

RIP Charles Bruce Gordon II.

Boys should be able to wear Kilts whenever they want

Apparently there is alot of debate about it. I looked it up online.

A kid named chris Whitehead went against his school policy that said guys must wear pants during the hotter months. He said it was unfair girls could change into skirts while guys couldnt change into shorts. There was a loophole in the policy which made it possible for boys to wear skirts, so thats exactly what he did to protest. Skirts arent exactly the same thing as kilts, but the idea is still there.

Chris Whitehead Article

Apparently there is alot of debate over kids wearing kilts at school dances too. Alot of prinipals or schools seem to think there is something wrong with it. This begs the quetion, is it against a kids rights to tell him to change into pants? It is a traditional dress afterall. If he is trying to honor his heritage, who is anybody to stop him? If aything good came out of this its the scottish heritage organizatiosn spoke out about it, and came together. I think more often than not people in america, especially christians, and people who feel they have no ties to their cultures let things go without voicing their opinions. Maybe they think that they dont have a right to say anything, or maybe they just don't care enough, but it annoys me when nothing is said against acts like these.

Kilt to dance article

A Little Fun!

Canadian Boat Song

Because I'm not sure anyone actually reads this blog, I write here just as much for my enjoyment as others. I write it here so that I'll always have it when I need it. So I can remind myself of thoughts I had, and organize my feelings. Its like a journey, you know? A self-discovery. Why do I like this kind of stuff? Why do I like cultures? Obviously not every like or dislike needs a reason, but my curiousity gets the best of me sometimes.

Anyway, here is a poem I recently discovered that I want to preserve. Maybe someday I'll get the poem framed and put it on my wall. The idea of it, is that even though a person isn't in scotland, they still have highland blood. Nobody knows exactly who wrote this poem, and some say it was sung is gaelic, but that isnt sure. It appeared in blackwood's magazine. Its said that it was sung in boats during fur trading.

Canadian Boat Song
Anonymous
Listen to me, as when ye heard our father
Sing long ago, the song of other shores —
Listen to me, and then in chorus gather
All your deep voices, as ye pull your oars:
CHORUS
Fair these broad meads — these hoary woods are grand;
But we are exiles from our fathers' land.

From the lone shieling of the misty island
Mountains divide us, and the waste of seas —
Yet still the blood is strong, the heart is Highland,
And we in dreams behold the Hebrides:
Fair these broad meads — these hoary woods are grand;
But we are exiles from our fathers' land.

We ne'er shall tread the fancy-haunted valley,
Where 'tween the dark hills creeps the small clear stream,
In arms around the patriarch banner rally,
Nor see the moon on royal tombstones gleam:
Fair these broad meads — these hoary woods are grand;
But we are exiles from our fathers' land.

When the bold kindred, in the time long-vanish'd,
Conquer'd the soil and fortified the keep, —
No seer foretold the children would be banish'd,
That a degenerate Lord might boast his sheep:
Fair these broad meads — these hoary woods are grand;
But we are exiles from our fathers' land.

Come foreign rage — let Discord burst in slaughter!
O then for clansman true, and stern claymore —
The hearts that would have given their blood like water,
Beat heavily beyond the Atlantic roar:
Fair these broad meads — these hoary woods are grand;
But we are exiles from our fathers' land.^[5]

Highland games, Fitting in, and College Worries

Alot of the people I know are part of a "group." I'm not exactly sure how to explain this....they are part of a group of people that like the same things they like.

One of my friends is a fencer, she likes mideval things. For prom she dressed up in this princess stuff she got from king richard's faire. She goes to a bunch of medeval conventions and faires. A couple of my friends are bronies, which means they like "my little pony" and they go to alot of ponycons. Some of my friends are otaku's, which means they love japanese anime and manga, so they go to anime boston every year and cosplay (dress up as characters) at different anime conventions.

My mother likes pilgrim/american antique stuff so she goes to alot of antique stores and flee markets. My father might have been a half-hearted comic convention person at one point, but if he was going to fall under any catagory it would probably have something to do with the ocean. He goes to alot of seafod festivals, sand sculptor displays, and beach things.

The good thing about going to conventions or other places like conventions is that you are surrounded by people who are just as or more obsessed as you. You dont feel like such a freak for liking what you do.When you are there you feel like you are normal, and its okay to be you. People around you even understand! Imagine that! Someone who understands that you like something, isnt annoyed about it, and will actually join in! I know this because that is what I felt when I went to the highland games in New hampshire. Its a feeling I will never forget or get over!

I knew all of the songs that Charlie Zahm played! All of them! I looked around me and there were other people listening too! They knew the words too! Some were requesting songs, and others were tapping their feet! There were people wearing kilts, and plaids! They were proud to be wearing them, the same way I was! You could buy heather and thistles, you could get shortbread cookies. I just can't get over it because I didnt feel weird. I felt like I belonged. I could explain everything to my mom. I wasn't even the only kid my age excited about it!

So the point of me saying this is I'm part of a group too. I'm part of the highland games group. Granted, I've only been to one in New hampshire, but there are a couple in the new england area that I can go to this summer.

(I'm not this obsessed but I'm going to put this out there)
My entertainment and my day trips for the rest of my life could be centered around going to highland games if I wanted. Its not the only thing I want to do with my life, but its something I can fall back on when all other ideas expire. I could learn country dancing, when I'm older I can drink some of the beer (if I want), I could get a pet sheep or a westy like my grandpa and name it something scottish. My house when I'm older can be full of scottish stuff like thistles. I could get a thistle tattoo or a celtic knot tattoo.I can marry a scottish guy that dresses up in a kilt at conventions (although I'm not exactly looking that far ahead, and my main concern for a husband is not going to be his heritage). I could learn to weave tartans, or learn to speak gaelic. If I wanted I could dedicate my life to something I love, and I would never have any regrets. Just the fact that I could do this is amazing to me, its such a wonderful world!

My future is full of possibilities, I can do all of this stuff and more. Its just a matter of desire and determination.

The truth is I've been concerned about college. I didnt make any friends at orientation, and I'm afraid nobody will accept me. The school I'm going to is a big party school, and I'm not a big partier. I knew it was a big party school when I applied, but it wasnt until a recent incident that I realized just how against alcohol I am. I might have made the wrong choice, I'm not sure. My teacher said that "it doesnt matter where you go as long as you know who you are" and I'm pretty sure that I have a good grasp on who I am, so that calms me down.

I just want to say that it is such a relief and comfort to know there are people like me out there at highland games and scottish fairs. Just to know that there are people who would accept me helps me get through this worry I have right now. I feel good to know that there is a place where I can go to feel better. When Iam upset, I can bring up the memory/feeling of being at NHscot, that amazing feeling of being a part of something. Wish me luck

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"From the lone sheiling of the misty island
Mountains divide us, and the waste of seas-
Yet still the blood is strong, the heart is Highland,
And we in dreams behold the hebridies."
--Canadian boat song

--JSparrow

Selkies

I went to see the sand castles in hampton NH with my little brother and dad. My little brother is so cute. I taught him the duck face and the sup nod, so he thinks he is cool now. He is obsessed with the song "sweet caroline" because I told him he needs to learn it by heart.

  On our way to the camp site he asked me to tell him a story. My dad had a 1959 truck with a terrible radio and a loud engine, so there was nothing else to do during the ride. I told him some scottish stories, because we are both scottish. My brother, if you want to be annoyingly technical, is only my half-brother. He has a different mother. So he isnt german, croatian, or czec like me. He is only scottish and cherokee, (which I am too). His mom is almost 100 percent scottish. So this was a good heritage to embrace, because it combines everyone I love. I can talk to my dad about it, and he can get into it, or I can talk to my mom. Nobody is left out.

I told him about selkies, which may be only irish, I'm not sure. I told him the mermaid stories too, the mermaid one was scottish. Anyway for anyone that doesnt know, selkies are seals that can turn into humans. They are seals that can take off their seal skins and walk on the shore. The main selkie story is about a woman who took off her seal skin to go onto the shore. A farmer who lived nearby saw her and decided he had to marry her. So he took her seal skin and hid it burried in the sand so she couldnt find it. (A selkie obviously cant be a seal without their skin) The legend is that if a selkie finds his/her skin they with feel an uncontrollable urge to return to the sea. They cant help it. Anyway, she married the farmer, and had his kids. She was happy, but she missed the sea. One day her kid was digging in the sand and discovered the skin. He showed it to his mother, and she couldnt control herself. She went back. The farmer came back and she was gone. Its actually a really sad story.

My brother swore that we were selkies once I had finished. It was cute. We were going to the beach so he said "we need to look for our seal skins." What was even more funny is that we were in a gift shop and there were a bunch of seal magnets. He held it up to my dad and said "look a selkie!" He asked me if selkies are real. I went on a rant about the aquatic ape theory because I recently watched that "mermaids" documentary on discovery or national gerographic or whatever its called. He understood it a little, but not too much, I ended up saying "they're real if you believe in them." he said he did.

Before I get into Selkie movies/books/songs that I know, I want to talk a little bit about the culture near the ocean. The ocean is a key factor is ireland and scotland, at least thats what i get from all the folk songs and stories I hear. When I was at the ocean, I couldnt help but realize that their villages by the sea are probably similar in alot of ways to the one's by the cape. Also, just across the water is ireland and scotland, so it was like we were connected. Anyway, back to selkies.

There is a movie on netflix, or at least it used to be on netflix called Ondine. Its about a man who has a daughter battling cancer, and he is fishing one day and he catches a woman. The daughter swears the woman is a selkie. It had alot of beautiful parts in it. I liked the part when they were talking about how some people are "dark" like the sea or something, and others arent. I think the celtic gene pool is interesting. You got a guy with dark hair and dark eyes and he gets a kid with red or blonde hair. Sometimes blue eyes! Its the weirdest thing.

QUOTE: "She sings to the fishes and he catches them"

There is another movie called "The Secret of Roan Inish." I love the word Inish. I liked this movie better because it was more folklore-y. Its about Fiona, a young girl who is sent to live with her grandparents and her cousin near the island of Roan Inish, where the selkies are rumored to reside. It is a family legend that her younger brother was swept away in his infancy and raised by a selkie. Its a beautiful story, interesting in an irish way.

QUOTES from the secret of roan Inish:

"Once a Selkie finds its skin again, neither chains of steel nor chains of love can keep her from the sea."

Fiona: Why does he run from me?
Tadhg:  Why do you chase him?
Tadhg:  He's my little brother! He's lost out there!
Tadhg: He's not lost... he's just with another branch of the family.

"I've no idea of the future, but I can see the past quite well. And the present, if the weather's clear."

 "The sea is a sickness and you two will come to grieve for it!"

There is also a book I once read called "seven years into the sea." This book is about a girl who is returning to her childhood home, and while there she remmembers being a child and meeting a strange person on the beach. When she comes back she meets a selkie. This book is really good because it had culture in it, and community. Its not just a story about a girl on her own. I read it a while ago, but i remmember feeling like it was really different from normal books I read. There was something about it that was both spiriting and disheartening. I recommend it.

QUOTES:

“It never seemed fair that just when you're old enough to do anything you want, you can't. You have to start working, so there's no time. And if there is time, you're not working, so there's no money.” 

“Morning's great that way. You can cry yourself to sleep and wake up wondering what the fuss was over.” 

“Beckon The Sea,
I'll Come To Thee....
Shed Seven Tears,
Perchance Seven Years....” 

“Gwen?"
"Yes."
"You know why we have to be together, don't you?"
"..."
"I'm your selkie.” 


I promise this is the last selkie thing I have to say! There is a song called "The selkie" by Iona Leigh that I recently got off itunes. The music is beautiful, She sings in a voice that is a little highpitched at one point, but most of the song in in a lower voice, which I like. The lyrics arent online so sometimes I'm not exactly sure what she is saying, but the chorus is beautiful. It goes like this (I think):

"Silver skin
from irish shore
bound to the sea
but ancient lore"
(theres more after that but there is one line I dont understand so I'm ignoring it lol)

Here is a link to the song: The selkie by Iona Leigh

Anyway, thats all I'm going to write on the subject for now. It was something that needed to be covered eventually. I had alot of fun exploring this part of the culture. I'll probably learn more stories and put them in. This is what I do.

--JSparrow